Monday, March 2, 2015

One pot meals are favorites of mine for obvious reasons.
I was scrounging for something quick and satisfying this weekend and I found a package of shiitake mushrooms tucked way in the back of my refrigerator crisper that seemed no less worse for wear since the 5 days I had purchased them. With a few stand-by condiments and a bag of fresh spinach leaves I had supper within 15 minutes.

(Shiitakes hold their meaty texture far better than just white button mushrooms.) When the mushrooms, shallots and coconut is just browned and still tender, set aside. Use the same skillet and add 3/4 cup arborio rice. Turn heat to low/medium and add your first half cup of chicken or vegetable stock. Do the risotto thang of cooking down and adding stock 3 or 4 times until the rice is creamy and al dente. This may take up to 1 and a half cups of stock. I did not have white wine which is nice to add to the cooking risotto but I did have lemons. Add the juice of one half lemon to the last cooking. Add a small handful of shaved parmesan, stir and serve immediately over fresh spinach leaves with extra parm, freshly ground pepper and a drizzle of olive oil.

photo credit Alexis Zaharis CustomDeluxeDesigns

Enameled cast iron cookware is perfect for cooking one skillet meals as it holds the heat so beautifully. I bought this set of three nesting Descoware skillets in flame orange from Etsy seller CustomDeluxeDesigns last year. Descoware preceded Le Creuset and was made in Belgium in the early mid century. It was the preferred cookware of Julia Child.